Sri Lanka to host regional trade forum

Oct 12, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka will host the Asia Pacific Trade Facilitation Forum (APTFF), a platform to promote regional trade and share information, Ceylon Chamber of Commerce said. “South Asia is a region that has many benefits to reap through improved trade facilitation,” the Chamber said in a statement.

“This region still remains one of the world’s least integrated in the world. Intra-regional trade has been stagnating around 4-5 percent in the past decade.

“Studies have revealed that that the South Asian region’s expansion of trade can be substantially advanced with programmes of concrete action in order to address barriers to trade facilitation and thereby advance regional goals.”

Critics have noted that Sri Lanka has failed to make much headway in trade liberalization particularly with India in recent years with big business production interests blocking trade liberties of the people by directing the coercive power of the state against them.

Critics say South Asia was kept in poverty by states that stole the trade freedoms of the people with protectionism, import licensing, violated their property rights through nationalization and currency depreciation

Search for:

About Us

LBO is the pioneer and leader in online business and economics news in Sri Lanka, LBO brings you a more comprehensive online news experience, integrating a host of interactive tools to keep you better informed.